"Really tough, not gonna lie" - Andreescu on marathon win over Sakkari

Bianca Andreescu is back in a final and it was a long wait but in order to get there, she needed to dig deep against an inspired Sakkari.

It was a long route of recovery for Bianca Andreescu but Bibi, as she is popularly called, is back to playing for trophies. To get to the Miami Open final she had to overcome a very inspired Sakkari with the match lasting a very long time and eventually ending in the morning hours of Friday.

After the match, Andreescu said:

"Against her, I had no choice but to run for everything that I could and just fight until the end because that's what she was doing. She was really taking control of the points a lot of the time. It was really tough, I'm not going to lie."

Besides being grueling physically the match also ended very late with Andreescu holding a press conference at 3 a.m. In it she spoke about what worked for her in the match:

"I have a lot of experience in these tough three-setters and digging through and finding a way. Sometimes I literally feel like I'm an octopus out there running side to side, I feel like I have eight legs. It's insane. Sometimes I don't even know how I get to some shots. But it's that fighting spirit I have always had in me, never giving up."

She will play against Ashleigh Barty in the final, the defending champion and reigning world number one. They never played before and on that match she said:

"It's everything. Her being No.1 and her doing really, really well. Her game style, as well. It's something I have never really experienced. I love a challenge, and I know she's going to challenge me on Saturday, so it's a mixture of everything."

She also underlined expectations of a tough match:

"I know it's going to be really tough. She's playing great tennis, and I hope I can be on my A-game."